Ginkgo sucker

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whitenack

whitenack

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I bought a couple of cheap ginkgos yesterday. Both were in containers. One had a bad lean, which I posted a question about yesterday.

The other one has a sucker coming out of the base of the flare. After brushing off the fine layer of loose soil, I notice there used to be another sucker, one of pretty good size, that has already been cut back on the other side of the flare from this new one.

When is the best time to cut the sucker?

Where on the sucker do I cut it? As low as possible?

Does this sucker imply that this tree was grafted to be male?

Other than those issues, both trees look to be in great shape. All the branches are coming off the main leader at almost a 90* angle. The tops of both trees are bent off at about a 45* angle, as if the tree was growing up into the ceiling of the greenhouse, but I assume that over time that will straighten out?

Thanks,
 
whitenack said:
When is the best time to cut the sucker?

Where on the sucker do I cut it? As low as possible?

Does this sucker imply that this tree was grafted to be male?

The tops of both trees are bent off at about a 45* angle .. I assume that over time that will straighten out? ,
Click to expand...

Now

Yes, look for a collar (suckers have them too)

Probably; can you see a graft union?

Probably; I might splice it to be sure.

Try emailing "Elmore" here; he raises ginkgoes.

O and btw how is the root system? Circling or straight?
 
When is the best time to cut the sucker?
As soon as you notice it or at your convenience

Where on the sucker do I cut it? As low as possible?
As low as possible.

Does this sucker imply that this tree was grafted to be male?
No. More likely a response to stress.

I assume that over time that will straighten out?
Assume nothing and assume everything. I would stake the terminal for as long as it takes to lignify and stay straight.
 
treeseer said:
O and btw how is the root system? Circling or straight?
Click to expand...
Hard to tell, But I'd say somewhat circling. I didn't want to disturb the roots, so I just popped it out of the container and put it in the ground.

Elmore said:
Assume nothing and assume everything. I would stake the terminal for as long as it takes to lignify and stay straight.
Click to expand...
How is the best way to do that? The entire tree is staked with bamboo, which I plan to remove and stake it better with two iron posts and some string. Would it be best to take the bamboo and tie it to the top part of the tree?
 
whitenack said:
Hard to tell, But I'd say somewhat circling. I didn't want to disturb the roots, so I just popped it out of the container and put it in the ground. ?
Click to expand...

You bought a pig in a poke. :eek: If you did not find the flare and see that the woody roots are growing out, you may have big problems.

See info on planting in the link below and

http://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/woody/planting/index.htm
 
Last edited:
treeseer said:
You bought a pig in a poke. :eek: If you did not find the flare and see that the woody roots are growing out, you may have big problems.

See info on planting in the link below and

http://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/woody/planting/index.htm
Click to expand...

Yeah, I mentioned it was a cheapy. :laugh: I paid $25 for each. I'll post some pics at lunch.

I found the flare, and the root circling isn't that bad. If you look at the ufl website, the roots are slightly more circling than the ones in Pic #4, and no where near the ones in pic #1.

Plus, I bought some sort of red maple (they didn't know what kind) for $20. It will need to be pruned at some point, and has a small crook at the base, but I think I got a decent deal.
 
Here are some pics of one of the ginkgos. After I took these pictures, I took out the bamboo stakes, raised the stakes to the tops of the trees, and tied them to the tops and then to the middle of the tree. The bamboo is very strong, and I will see if this will get them to straighten out.

You can also see where the sucker was. I pruned it before I took the picture. It is small, but I assume that is a root flare. I would have liked to dig a little deeper to really make sure, but as you can see, I was already getting into the small feeder roots, so I decided to stop.
 
Elmore said:
When is the best time to cut the sucker?
As soon as you notice it or at your convenience

I usually keep the suckers on until the tree has been planted for a year and is well acclimated before I do any pruning.
Click to expand...
 

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